Illini recuits Chasson Randle, Mike Shaw taking time to make decision on school

John Supinie

Wednesday

Sep 22, 2010 at 12:01 AMSep 22, 2010 at 10:23 PM

College coaches identify prospects as seventh- and eighth-graders. Players make college campus visits before stepping into a high school classroom, and commitments come from freshmen and sophomores. But Rock Island High School senior guard Chasson Randle and Chicago De La Salle senior forward Mike Shaw turned back the clock to years ago, when commitments routinely came after official visits.

The recruiting process is no longer a pressure cooker. It's a microwave, with things happening so quickly.

College coaches identify prospects as seventh- and eighth-graders. Players make college campus visits before stepping into a high school classroom, and commitments come from freshmen and sophomores. But Rock Island High School senior guard Chasson Randle and Chicago De La Salle senior forward Mike Shaw turned back the clock to years ago, when commitments routinely came after official visits.

Randle and Shaw are the difference between a really good recruiting class and perhaps the best in school history for Illinois coach Bruce Weber, said recruiting analyst Joe Henricksen.

Randle, for one, still isn't in any hurry, even though he had the scholarship offer from the Illini three years ago.

"To me, this is a big decision,'' Randle said. "This is a life decision. I can agonize as much as I want. It's a decision that I have to make. I don't want to make a decision and end up transferring. I want to make a decision and stick all four years.

"Some people know where they want to go. For me, it's kind of different.''

Randle is down to three finalists -- Illinois, Purdue and Stanford. He will begin making official recruiting visits this weekend at Purdue. He goes to Stanford on Oct. 7 and 8. The trip to Illinois on Oct. 15 and 16 is the same weekend as Midnight Madness. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound combo guard, who is ranked No. 68 nationally by Rivals, insisted this week that he still had the decision to make.

It seemed unlikely he would make a commitment until taking all three visits. Randle cut his list to the three schools after they followed him to Europe during the summer for the under-17 World Championships. Randle and the U.S. won the gold medal.

"It really showed they were serious about recruiting me,'' Randle said. "I was really wanted. When you see the commitment of flying across the world, that really means something.''

Henricksen called Randle "a true combo guard.''

"He's going to be a basketball stat sheet stuffer,'' Henricksen said. "He'll get a few rebounds from the guard spot, a couple steals, a few assists, some points. He just brings so much to the table. When it comes to Illinois, I don't know if they really have a true combo guard in place, except for maybe (Joseph) Bertrand.''

Ranked No. 58 nationally, the 6-8 Shaw cut his finalists to Illinois, Marquette, DePaul, Notre Dame and West Virginia. Like Randle, Shaw made several trips to the Illinois campus over the years. He was in town in early August. He will likely make a recruiting visit in October, but nothing appeared scheduled yet.

"Shaw is important,'' Henricksen said. "He brings some of the intangibles that program needs as fas as beging a tough kid who is willing to go out, play and do some dirty work. He's probably one of the best one or two rebounders in the state.''

With Chicago Orr guard Mycheal Henry (No. 36 by Rivals), Chicago Mount Carmel point guard Tracy Abrams (50 by Rivals) and Chicago St. Ignatius center Nnanna Egwu (93 by Rivals), Illinois is a commitment or two between a really good class and a great one, Henricksen said.

Losing out on Randle and Shaw would hurt, especially considering the time and money spent in the process. Getting them both would be huge.

"If they go two for two, then it would be hard to top the depth and quality'' of the class in school history, Henricksen said. "All five guys would be at different positions and all in the top 100. They would bring different attributes. That's a recruiting gold mine, a jackpot.''

Illinois is also recruiting 6-5 guard Josh Oglesby of Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Washington, but he doesn't have the point guard skills the Illini need on the roster. Oglesby already visited Iowa and Minnesota. Senior forward Devin Langford from Huntsville, Ala., lists Illinois as a finalist, but he also said he may wait until after his senior season to make a commitment.

NOTE: Don't be surprised if Midnight Madness is shifted to Huff Hall in October. The Illini like the cozy atmosphere for the late-night event, and Huff is located in the middle of campus and, thus, likely to draw more students to the event.

John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com.

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